by Celia Kyle
Thankfully none of the blood was his own.
A long slow hiss sounded behind him, the feline threat followed by a low grunt he recognized. He mentally smiled. The grunt came from Brute, the hiss from Maya. The guard was obviously doing his best to keep Maya restrained, and his mate wasn’t taking it easy on Brute. He had no doubt that she’d gladly join the fight and rip out the male’s throat. He had strength, but Maya had agility, cunning, and bone-deep stubborn determination. Fuck, but he loved her. Her, the family they’d started, and the pride they’d built.
A red paw swung at his head and Alex jerked out of reach, glaring at the tiger. This male was a threat to all he held close in his heart, and it was time for him to die. He was done playing—done causing pain—and was now ready to put an end to the carnage.
So when his opponent rose up and stretched for Alex’s head once more, Alex ducked low and spun. The tiger went over his head, the leap taking him to Alex’s opposite side. To the casual observer, it’d appear as if the tiger succeeded in his attempt to get past the Prime, casual observers that hadn’t been trained by Ricker or Stone—the strongest gorilla shifter he’d ever met. Strong and deadly and more than willing to kill for what he believed in.
Years ago, when they’d begun training shifters in the mountains of Ridgeville, he’d believed in making sure their people could protect themselves and others—training Alex used to rip out the tiger’s throat.
One snatch, one grab of his claws, and he held a mass of flesh on his paw. The tiger fell to the ground with a hard thump, body twitching and paws scrambling to bat at his throat. With the pain and panic came the cat’s retreat while the male’s beast shoved his human half forward.
While the tiger struggled for breath, fur receded and claws transitioned, the animal reverting to its two-legged form in a rapid succession of snapping bones and stretching muscles. The jagged wounds came into view, flesh wrested from bone and dangling from his stomach and ribs. Pale splashes of white shone through the red, attesting to the depth of Alex’s strikes. He’d wanted to visit pain on the male—pain and death.
And he’d succeeded.
Alex rested on his haunches and shook his paw, sending that hunk of flesh flying through the air to land near the tiger’s—male’s—head. Panicked eyes met his, agony filling his opponent’s features as pain and the truth finally registered.
He was a dead man.
Alex watched the shifter die on his lawn, his pride bearing witness to his rapid and deadly response to a threat.
Then he lifted his paw and ran his rough tongue over the thick padding, cleaning it of blood and gore.
Like all cats, he really hated to have anything on his paws.
3
“Be careful what you wish for. Also be careful to include a clean-up in your wish. Because when that shit comes true, sometimes it comes with a dead body, and I don’t do cleaning. Ick.” -- Maya O’Connell, Prima of the Ridgeville pride and so not into dealing with messy things.
Brute didn’t release Maya until the human-shaped tiger was well and truly dead.
Dammit.
But the fight was over, her mate was well, and her daughter…
Harper remained plastered to the backs of Maya’s legs. The small, damp fur-covered body trembled and pressed closer. The short snout and broad forehead nestled against the back of her knees, as if hiding her face from the carnage made her invisible.
And that… broke her heart. They were a family of lions, a pride that had stood strong against every enemy that’d come their way, but Harper was too young…
Too young to have to face reality, at least not yet. It broke her heart that she’d already been exposed in this way.
Harper shook again, the violent tremble so strong Maya nearly tumbled forward, and she reached out for Brute to steady her. The forearm beneath her palm was furred with the golden strands of their kind, and a glance around the yard revealed that everyone was in some stage of shifting or another.
Alex had been the first to react, but the rest of their pride looked just as ready to step in—like the solid, protective family they’d always been.
Harper rubbed her snotty nose on Maya’s calf, a soft sniffle immediately following, and Maya didn’t want her daughter to emerge and be faced with the gore.
She squeezed her guard’s arm. “Brute?” The massive male turned his attention to her. “Can you and the other guys,” she jerked her head toward the remnants of her mate’s opponent, “take care of things while I see to…” she flicked her gaze to Harper and then back to him.
“Of course,” he murmured and turned his focus to the crowd.
A raise of his hand and quick gesture had people moving, her personal guards stepping forward while others focused on gathering kids and ushering everyone inside. The pride worked as one—squirrel, tiger, fox, or rabbit—they got shit done.
Which meant Maya could focus on her mate and children. As others drifted away, Alex drew closer. He didn’t stop until he reached her side and nudged her palm with his nose. She ran her fingers over his snout and then dug them into his mane, the fur not even a hint damp with sweat. He didn’t breathe heavily from exertion, and she didn’t even catch a hint of his blood in the air.
He was letting her see that he was okay.
He was okay. Their daughter was okay. Their sons were okay.
So that meant she could fall apart. But she wouldn’t because badass Primas didn’t fall apart when the very reason they breathed was threatened. She had brass ovaries, right?
Maya fisted Alex’s fur and he leaned into her, giving her the strength she needed. His touch, his strength, allowed her to turn, take a tiny step back, and then fall to her knees in front of Harper.
The tiny lioness trembled, whiskers twitching, ears flat against her head and tail whipping back and forth. Her lips shook as well, a mixture of a lion’s whine and a child’s cry escaping her throat.
“Oh, baby,” she whispered and held out her arms. “Come here.”
But Harper didn’t rush at her, not like she had in the past when she needed reassurance. When Alex turned fully to face their daughter and released a low chuff, she still didn’t move. If Harper didn’t want mommy, she always wanted daddy—and yet she remained in place.
No, she actually took a step back.
Easton lowered to a squat on Maya’s other side, Weston just behind him on two legs with fur coating every inch of skin. “Harps?” He held out his hand, palm up as if he beckoned a frightened animal. “Come here. Dad took care of things, right? You’re okay.”
The trembles and shakes didn’t cease, not when Harper’s attention drifted from her brothers to her father and then landed on Maya once more. Broken eyes. Sad eyes. Eyes that’d seen too much at such a young age. She wondered what really haunted her little girl.
What…
Harper jerked, a full body shake, and then lurched forward. She rose to all fours, another jolt overtaking her, and Maya’s eyes filled with tears. The third lurch had one droplet trailing down her cheek and then a fourth…
The fourth ended with a small maw spread wide, a high-pitched yowl that signaled her daughter’s pain and… And a teeny, tiny hedgehog rolling from Harper’s mouth.
Her daughter.
Tried to eat.
A hedgehog.
Maya stared at the small bundle, its curled body hardly moving, and then let her attention flick to Harper, then the dead tiger behind them, and once more to the hedgie. She just shook her head, unable to do much more than wonder and stare.
Weston could do more though. When Alex, Maya, and East froze in place, West snarled and then roared, jumping over his brother and aiming straight for the animal. A true beast or shifter?
“Weston, no!” She reached for her son, rushing to stop him from doing something he’d later regret. With his animal so close, so reckless and uncontrollable… He’d drown in the guilt when he was himself once more whether this was a natural animal or a tiny shifter.
> Alex moved as well, his jaws parting to release a roar, muscles bunching to tackle their son.
But it wasn’t them that stopped Weston in his tracks.
It was Harper. Harper who darted forward to stand over the hedgehog, protecting it—her?—with her body. She opened her mouth and released a long, slow hiss, short fangs exposed and pure fury in every line of her feline body. It was pure, momma-esque rage that Harper unleashed on her older, larger, stronger brother—a child’s fury that had him backing away while his fur receded as quickly as it’d come.
They all stood there, their family of lions—every one of them on the edge of losing control, and Maya… She did what she always did. What she did best…
“Dazs, you are grounded, young lady.” She adopted her mom tone and even wagged a finger at her daughter. “Mommy said she wanted a hedgehog in the pride, but we agreed we’d plan Operation Quill Catch together.” Maya widened her eyes, mouth dropping open a little with feigned shock. “Oooh, just wait until your Aunt Carly gets ahold of you.”
A second story window slammed open and Carly leaned out. “Did she seriously run Operation Quill Catch by herself? Dazs, you little shit! Just wait until I—“
Choruses of “little shit” came from inside the house, the all-too-familiar voices of children filling the air.
And that was enough to pop the tension-filled balloon that surrounded them. Alex gave himself a full body shake and relaxed, leaning into her side. Weston took a deep breath and cracked his neck, his fur fully receding with the new calm that washed over him. Easton pushed to his feet and stepped closer to a rapidly calming West. Shoulder to shoulder, they stood and took strength from each other. Which just left Harper and her little friend.
Her little trembling, saliva soaked, hedgehog-shaped friend.
What the fuck was she supposed to do with a hedgehog?
An hour later, alone with just the hedgehog and a still-shifted Harper, Maya got her answer. What was she supposed to do with a hedgehog?
Fill the sink with water and let it take a bath—a human-shaped Mommy and tiny lioness assisted bath.
Harper purred, hind legs on the toilet seat and forelegs on the counter, and occasionally lapped at the hedgehog as she floated past. Every so often Harper and the hedgie would freeze, gazes snapping to the bathroom door, their heads tilted as if they listened for an approaching predator.
Maya’s heart broke for them. She wasn’t sure of the hedgehog’s age, but until that day, Harper hadn’t had to worry about predators. Now it was all different. Her baby wasn’t such a little baby anymore.
Maya cupped the small animal, cradling the nearly weightless body in her hands, and carefully lifted until they were eye level. “Hi, sweetheart. You had a rough day, huh?”
She stroked its small head, careful to keep the pressure light while she gathered its scent. She brought her fingertips to her nose and Maya’s lioness was there, ready to identify the small bit of quill-covered animal in her palms. Yup, hedgehog shifter. A girl, though she wasn’t sure of her age. Regardless, Harper brought her home. Harper was Maya’s. That meant the hedgehog was Maya’s.
Period.
“Do you want to shift for me?” She raised her eyebrows, her blue eyes locked on the near black of the hedgehog. “Maybe tell me what happened?”
The hedgie’s response was immediate, tiny squeaks interlaced with snaps of her teeth and wiggling of her body. She fought to get free of Maya’s grip, but she wasn’t about to release the small shifter. Not at that height. Not when the fall could possibly kill her.
Unfortunately, Harper made the task even more difficult. Maya’s daughter yowled loud and long, ending the cry with a drawn out hiss that promised violence. It would have scared Maya if she hadn’t given birth to the kid. After shoving a wiggling watermelon—three wiggling watermelons—there was no pain that she couldn’t tolerate and live through.
A bite from her kid was nothing compared to child birth.
No-thing.
That didn’t mean her wonderful, accommodating, protective-as-hell pride felt the same way.
Brute broke the door down.
Carly dove between the male’s legs and slid across the floor, not stopping until she struck the opposite wall. Maya would have laughed at her BFF since Carly was rocking a rabbit nose, two whiskers, and floppy ears, but somehow she restrained herself. She should congratulate the wererabbit. She’d been practicing a partial shift for years but still hadn’t quite gotten the hang of it. She was doing better, right?
Maddy was next, the little Sensitive climbing up Brute’s back and launching her shifted body over the larger male. Maddy—after her badass lessons all those years ago—had become more of a “rush in now, figure out what I’m doing later” lioness. Which was why she went scrambling across the tile as well. Lion claws plus slick tile didn’t really work.
Elly rocked her squirrel super powers. Oh, she climbed Brute but then hopped to the top of the door, one hunk of wood still clinging to the hinge. Then it was another leap to a curtain followed by a balancing act along the top of the glass enclosed shower. The squirrel shifter didn’t stop until she perched on the closest corner, beady little eyes narrowed and focused on the hedgehog in Maya’s hands.
And Maya… she just sighed and shook her head. God love the pride, but they overreacted just a little. That feeling doubled when Brute stumbled into the bathroom, pushed by Millie’s large, black, panther head right to the back of his legs. On her furred heels came the rest of her guards.
Behind them? Her mate. Alex—a sight for sore eyes and bleeding fingertips that were caused by one particular hedgehog, a hedgehog that went from attacking Maya to crawling up her bare arms and cowering in her hair.
She let her gaze touch on each member of her family. They were more than pride after the years they’d fought side by side. “Y’all are batshit crazy with a side of what the fuck are you doing?”
Harper chuffed her own little addition, her support clear.
Alex gave her a grin, a small tip of his lips that had her both hot and aching for a bed and annoyed at once. Damn the gorgeous hunk of lion. He made it even worse by leaning against the doorjamb—legs crossed at his ankles and arms over his chest. His thin shirt stretched taut over those hard muscles she loved so much and—
Carly grunted, the sound drawing Maya’s attention, and then scrambled to her feet, tiny claws tipping her fingers clicking and clacking on the tile. “We’re rescuing you.”
“Uh-huh.” Maya rolled her eyes. “Right. From a hedgehog.”
“Shifter,” Carly added, and the squirrel added her own animalistic yeah-chitter.
“Right. Hedgehog shifter.” She pointed at her neck. “The teeny tiny hedgehog shifter currently cowering in my hair? That’s the one you’re worried about?”
Every single woman—shifted or not—focused on the small lump at the back of her neck.
Even Brute glared at the ball. “Close to your jugular. One bite and…”
And the hedgehog in question squeaked in outrage. Maya had gotten good at shifter interpretation. This one basically said, “Well, I never.”
Unless the hedgie was young. Then it was “nu-huh, poopie head.”
Age had a lot to do with it all, and that was one thing Maya still didn’t know.
Because the woman-girl-person wouldn’t shift.
Maya turned her attention to her mate and did what any self-respecting woman would do—she whined. “Aleeexxxx…”
He just chuckled, that sexy one she loved so much. “All right, guys. She’s safe. Get out.”
“But—“ Carly started.
Maddy hissed.
Elly flew at her like crouching squirrel but never actually landed because Harper launched herself at her Aunt Elly, which had Elly’s mate Deuce getting all snarly and—
“E-fucking-nough!” Maya’s own roar cut through it all. The shout echoed off the walls, filling the space with its volume, and everyone froze in place. Even Elly, captu
red in Harper’s slobbery hold, stopped wiggling to get away.
All eyes were on her, human and animal alike, and she took advantage of the momentary quiet.
“That’s enough.” Maya pointed—once more—at the cowering hedgehog. “This little hedgie girl is scared shitless.” At least, she hoped so. She really didn’t want to get shit on. She thought she’d moved past that once the kids were potty trained. “You guys aren’t making it better, so get your poop in a group and get the fuck out.”
Males grunted their objections and Elly squeaked, although Maya wasn’t sure if that was in outrage or pain because Harper hadn’t let her go yet. Maddy chuffed, Elly curled her midnight lip and exposed a single fang, while Carly…
Well, another one of Carly’s whiskers busted free.
Maya wasn’t going to laugh. She wasn’t. At least, not until they were all gone.
Which wasn’t happening because everyone remained motionless. Dammit.
“I’m not joking. I want you all gone.” She swung her attention to her daughter. “Harper, put Aunt Elly down before Uncle Deuce turns you into a Scooby Snack.” She didn’t stop there with giving orders. “Brute, go order me a new door. Carly, so help me, if you scratched my new cabinets with those chiclet nails of yours. And Maddy,” Maya sighed. “Honey, bless your heart and thank you for coming to my rescue, but get the fuck out.”
Those orders earned her two things—glares and an empty bathroom. Alex even managed to get Harper out of the space.
Which left Maya with a hedgehog. What the fuck was she supposed to do with a hedgehog, again?
4
“Don’t ever have kids. Mainly because when you see your mate being all sweet and it makes you want to ride him like a pony, they clam jam you again.” --Maya O’Connell, Prima of the Ridgeville pride and woman who often has her muffin muzzled by the little bastards. Er, darlings.
Upstairs was quiet, most of the pride gone while his mate’s guards and her “posse” headed back downstairs to the living room. Nah, “posse” wasn’t the right word. What did she call their group? Then he snorted.